This second session is designed to explore how we, as parents, can take those first steps to talking to our children about race and racism.
As you begin this second session, remind the group of the ground rules you agreed to create a safe space for discussion. You may find it helpful to recap some of the things you explored in the previous session about challenging our own biases and give the group the opportunity to share how they have got on as they have thought about this, during the time since you last met.
Begin the discussion by asking the group to think about something they remember their parents, or another parental figure, teaching them. What was it? Why was it important? How did they do it?
Explain that today, we’re going to be thinking about how we start talking to our children about race. This may feel like the session we’ve been waiting for; let’s get on with it! Today will be the first session; not the whole story, but the first step.
17 Discipline your children, and they will give you peace;
Proverbs 27:17
they will bring you the delights you desire.
Encourage the members of the group to have access to their own Bibles and read together Proverbs 29:17 and explain that this is a really helpful foundation for our talking to our children about race, understanding that it is one particular facet that we as parents need to lead, teach and discipline our children in.
Read page nine mid-section, page 11 bottom section to end of first sentence on page 12).
Take some time to pray together for the children of everyone gathered in the room. If appropriate, take some time to share their names and some of the situations they may be facing in talking about race together. Encourage the parents to commit to praying for each other’s children in the week ahead.
Give everyone a copy of the diagram:
Invite them to put it somewhere and use it as a reminder as to how we can talk to our children about race. If you have a Whatsapp group, you could send this out as a reminder during the week, before you meet again. If they have copies of the book, invite participants to read the advice in the second part of the chapter, as is most relevant to their own situation.
